¿Qué es la vida? Un frenesí. ¿Qué es la vida? Una ilusión, una sombra, una ficción, y el mayor bien es pequeño. ¡Que toda la vida es sueño, y los sueños, sueños son! The Spanish Golden Age, or El Siglo de Oro, was a time for the artist, the painters, the writers, the philosophers and the lovers, but most importantly it was a time for dramatist. It began in the late fifteenth century and lasted until 1700, shortly after the death of Pedro Calderón de la Barca. During this time religion and freedom played equal parts in reviving the life of a country once overshadowed by war and poverty. Until 1492 the Iberian Peninsula was under Muslim rule. And, although the area did flourish with their presence, the Christians, primarily the Catholics, …show more content…
Corras were a type of Spanish pageant wagon that would be lined up in groups of four or five to act as a mobile stage. They were the only place to perform plays before the development of public theatre, yet continued remained popular long after. They were especially sought after in the countryside where locals could not afford to travel to see larger productions. Actors who were unemployed by the larger companies and guilds formed compañas de la luega or companies of the road. Members of these troupes, as well as large licensed companies, could be males and females. However, only women married to other members of the company could actually perform. In these plays men could play women and women could play men, but their costumes could only change from the waist up when crossdressing was involved. Actors hired by companies had permanent spots at public theatres while the inner workings of the troupes were a bit more shady. Technical aspects were overseen by everyone within the company or troupe who could lend a hand. The director needed only to state his needs to the others and they would be done. The owner of the the company, head of the guild or leader of the troupe handled the funds. Then actors used their own money to have costumes made, using up to ⅕ or ½ of their annual salary. At least one carpenter would always travel with a troupe or be contracted to work for a company to build
From 711-1492, Christian Spaniards lived under Moorish rule until eventually, the Christian Kingdoms took over during the Reconquista. The conflicts between the Muslims and Christians created a militaristic culture in Spain that surpassed that of any other European nation. Furthermore, being trained militarily was often exclusively attributed to the nobility however, in Spain, “many young men knew these skills and used them to their advantage.” Without a doubt, recently reconquering their homeland motivated the Spanish to a basis for expansion and conquest that most other European societies were lacking. In addition, the voyages of Christopher Columbus led to discovering the New World which undoubtedly contributed to added interest in conquest. Eventually, each conquest further raised Spanish hopes for fame and
A Vanished World: Muslims, Christians, and Jews in Medieval Spain is survey medieval Spain, where Christians, Jews, and Muslims once lived side by side and the Muslims were in charge. The book tries to lead the reader to the conclusion that there is indeed a historical precedent for the three major religions establishing a beneficially symbiotic relationship which may be an enduring lesson for coexistence. The author, Chris Lowney, is an ex-Jesuit and holds degrees in medieval history and philosophy.
In this production, there are many different characters but if need be, one person can play multiple characters as some did in Kaufman’s production. There are twenty four characters in the play, including eight narrators but not including the parts entitled, “others”. Most casts for this play are all men due to the fact that the character’s in the play are men. However, if putting this show on at Oklahoma State, there would have to be some flexibility due to lack of one gender
The reconquest took a long time due to the fact that the Christian kingdoms Castile and Leon had split apart in the 10th century. At the time, the Muslims were called the Moors who had lost a vast amount of their unity within these long battles. Aragon was formed in 1035 as a new Christian peninsula, which would later unite back with the rest of the Iberian Peninsula. As kings died and new heirs gained the throne, slowly Reconquista was occurring. The Moorish culture was not fully annihilated from Spain; Toledo became the crossroads for people of all different religions and cultures. Escuela de Traductores was developed in Castile after they had completed their part in the reconquest. Among all of this, existing tensions between Portugal, Aragon, and Castile had vanished and the states consolidated their holdings. Two very powerful leaders, Ferdinand and Isabella, united the Spanish Crown through their marriage and together, they were able to complete the conquest of
The play Twelfth Night, or What You Will by William Shakespeare is a 1601 comedy that has proven to be the source of experimentation in gender casting in the early twenty-first century due to its portrayal of gender in love and identity. The play centrally revolves around the love triangle between Orsino, Olivia, and Viola. However, Olivia and Orsino both believe Viola is a boy named Cesario. Ironically, only male actors were on the stage in Shakespeare’s time. This means that Olivia, Viola, and other female characters were played by young boys who still had voices at higher pitches than older males.
Religion played a major role in expansion for both the Portuguese and the Spanish due to their extensive anti-Muslim crusade. Due to the over zealous religious fervor of the Christian Iberians, Christianity and thus the Iberians expanded into parts of western Europe during the crusades as Christians tried to convert the Muslims who were occupying this area. The Iberians did not stop with the European mainland; they were also expanding overseas. They were interested in the fertile land of the Canary Islands, Madeira, Azores and Cape Verde. These islands would also prove to be strategic acquisitions for the Iberians, as they would eventually provide the Iberians with bases and ports to be used for commerce. Throughout the 15th century the Spanish and Portuguese had been exploring lands throughout the Atlantic which drove Queen Isabella of Spain to commission Christopher Columbus in 1492 to “Discover and acquire islands and mainland in the ocean sea” (p.340) which eventually led to the discovery of North America.
The use of original practices, the costumes and male characters used to play the role of female characters are due to the different gender identity attributes and sexuality concerns from the play. Although the producer insists that the use of male characters to play female roles was mainly to show case the original set-up and forms of acting it can also be attributed to the producer wishing to raise different sexualities from the audience. The different actors who play the roles of females while they are male characters have been used by the producer to raise different sexualities since the heterosexual people in the audience view of the audience since gender as asserted by Bulman is performative rather than
There were cases in which women were used in plays, but they were used solely as models. Nonetheless, all of the types of women that lived in ancient Greece were depicted in all of the playwrights. The women in these plays were depicted by the role of a sinner, saint, poetess, coward, heroine, and many more. This was purposefully done in an attempt to make the audience relate to a certain character. In doing so, they could imagine that they were indeed a part of the play to some extent.
How this control was exercised over the actors was through their incredibly specific contracts. They could not disobey their company. The contracts were usually about 4-7 years long, but it meant that the actor could not work for any other company while on contract. With permission, they could be borrowed for a project, but it had to be approved. If it was, then they had to do it.
The whole idea of a Golden Age being possible is something that traces back in literary history through many plays, essays and other treatises carrying this theme. It became rather accelerated by the Renaissance writers who chose to implement it into their writings. The possibility of a Golden Age is taken with th...
In the fifth century Barbarians collapsed the Roman Empire and Europe entered the Dark Ages. Around this time the Visigoths expanded their empire by heading for Spain. Upon arriving in Spain, the Visigoths encountered Jews whom they treated somewhat gently until the Visigoths converted to Catholicism; the Visigoths then overran Jews. Soon after, Muslims from North Africa known as Berbers decided to invade the Iberian Peninsula in hopes to take control of Spain and expand the Muslim reign, which they did. This sudden change in rule of the territory provided a sense of relief for all the people living in Spain. The reason for this was because the Muslims treated everyone equally so long as they abided by Muslim authority and paid taxes. After all, the Christians...
In the Elizabethan period, it was "forbidden" for women to appear on stage and considered "immoral", and so boys played...
My fascination with history started while I was in elementary school. At this time in my life, history comprised purely of just what happened in history. Thus, learning about history was purely an intellectual pursuit. I had read numerous books about history—especially American history—for the sake of understanding the past better. I particularly preferred to read novels about former presidents and significant wars.
For my final paper, I will be discussing the culture of Spain. People that live in Spain are referred to as Spaniards. For the most part, the Spanish culture speak Spanish and might have some knowledge in the English language as well. The population of Spain is estimated to be around 47 million (“Spain” paragraph 1). The main two ethnicities/races of Spain include the composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types. Spaniards are guaranteed the freedom of religion; however, the majority of Spaniards are Catholic. It is very common in Spain to use physical contact when communicating with one another. In Spain, this is not considered an invasion of personal space because the Spaniards are accustomed to this communication habit. Bullfighting is obviously one of the more known customs of Spain than any other although with the new generation problems arise how humane the event is. “La siesta” is the balance between work and pleasure. The Spaniards get a few mid-day hours to eat lunch and rest. Lunch is the most important meal of the day in Spain and the nightlife is extended until four in the morning (“Culture & Customs in Spain” paragraph 1-2). Spanish culture has a vast artistic heritage. In the 20th century, some of the
... Critical Interpretations, ed. Harold Bloom (New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1987) 43. For further discussion on renaissance gender performance and identity politics among Shakespeare's cross-dressed heroines, see Michael Shapiro's Gender in Play on the Shakespearean Stage: Boy Heroines and Female Pages (Ann Arbor: The University of MIchigan Press, 1994).